European Union warns sanctions on ICC threaten International Justice
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The sanctions put forward by Trump come in response to ICC issuing arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Security Minister Yoav Gallant.
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A view of the exterior view of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, on March 31, 2021 (AP)
The European Union (EU) warned that sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) are a threat to the court's independence, and more broadly the judicial system, after Trump authorized economic and travel sanctions on people working on ICC investigations of US allies like "Israel".
Sanctioning the ICC threatens the Court’s independence and undermines the international criminal justice system as a whole. https://t.co/zk0lsnB1p0
— António Costa (@eucopresident) February 7, 2025
The US sanctions were enacted in response to the ICC issuing arrest warrants back in November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Security Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes in Gaza.
The European Commission expressed regret, saying that the ICC plays an essential part in upholding international law, and Trump's executive order threatens ongoing investigations and proceedings related to Ukraine.
Trump signed the executive order imposing sanctions on Thursday, saying that The Hague abused its power by issuing the arrest warrants for the Israeli PM and that the tribunal engaged in "illegitimate and baseless actions" targeting the United States and "Israel".
Israel and ICC grapple over arrest warrants
The International Criminal Court faced immediate "coercive measures, threats, pressure, and acts of sabotage" following the issuance of arrest warrants for the Israeli PM and his former Security Minister on November 21, 2024.
The warrants were met with immediate backlash from the United States, with former President Biden calling the warrants "outrageous" at the time, and Republican lawmakers pushing for sanctioning the ICC.
ICC President Tomoko Akane revealed in December that "several elected officials are being severely threatened and are subjected to arrest warrants from a permanent member of the UN Security Council" adding that the court is facing threats of sanctions "as if it was a terrorist organization".
